Al Mooney Archives

Is a Personal Inventory Part of Your Recovery Program?

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Doing a personal inventory is an important part of maintaining your sobriety and recovery. In fact, Step 10 suggests you do it regularly. But just how do you do it?

In The Recovery Book (page 362), Dr. Al suggests asking yourself a number of specific questions, all sorted into our familiar Recovery Zone System categories.

Read through the questions below, or download a printer-friendly version with space for writing.

Recovery Activities

Did I have a plan for the day, and did I follow it?

With whom did I spend most of my time?

Where did I spend my time?

Did anything threaten my sobriety recently? What?

What specific work did I do on my recovery program (attending meetings, doing meditations, reading fellowship materials, or listening to recordings, etc.)?

On the Radio! Dr. Mooney and Catherine Dold on WGN Radio in Chicago

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Dr. Mooney and Catherine Dold recently had a great talk with Rick Kogan on his WGN Radio (Chicago) show, After Hours With Rick Kogan.

Rick chatted with us for 45 minutes about the face of addiction today, the gift of recovery, and what’s in The Recovery Book. He called it a “remarkable book that could probably save your life.”

Give a listen over at WGN Radio – After Hours with Rick Kogan.

“Since My Divorce” Interviews Dr. Al

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Divorce coach Mandy Walker, who blogs at Since My Divorce, interviewed Dr. Al Mooney recently about how addiction, alcoholism and recovery can play havoc with a marriage and other relationships.

Check out her series of posts on addiction and divorce:

When Does Drinking Become a Problem in a Marriage?

Does Your Spouse’s Drinking Problem Mean Divorce?

How Do You Protect Your Kids From an Alcoholic Spouse?

How To Survive With Your Alcoholic Spouse in Recovery

Recovery Zone System Wristbands

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If you were at the Willingway Homecoming this weekend, you might have picked up a set of Recovery Zone System wristbands. The Recovery Zone System, featured in The Recovery Book, guides you through your recovery journey, and helps you to know what issues you should focus on at any one time. The wristbands serve as a handy reminder of where you are.

Here’s a post on how to use them.

Outstanding Book Award for The Recovery Book!

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We are thrilled to announce that The Recovery Book just won an Outstanding Book Award from the American Society of Journalists and Authors!

asja_awards-prize_winning_book

Ask Dr. Al: Do people with addiction really need to “live in recovery”?

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Do people with addiction really need to “live in recovery”? Can’t they just get sober and go on with their lives? Can’t they just go to treatment and get cured and move on?

Sobriety is just the first step in recovery. Treatment, too, is just the beginning. Recovery is really a lifelong process; like dealing with diabetes or another chronic disease, it is something that needs to be tended to every day.

Once a person gets sober, there is much more work to be done. They need to learn about their own personal triggers for relapse, and how to live their life in recovery while minimizing the risk of relapse. They need to restore their relationships and health; indeed, many need to rebuild their entire lives.

People in recovery also need to focus on different issues at different times. You can’t do everything at once in the first week that … Read more...